Spyderco Amalgam Mini Review

And btw guys flippers in general from Spyderco isn’t what people are saying has weaker detent.

It is specifically the compression lock flippers that often have weak detents.
 
Lapedog said:
And btw guys flippers in general from Spyderco isn’t what people are saying has weaker detent.

It is specifically the compression lock flippers that often have weak detents.
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As mentioned previously, that's my experience w/the 6 Spyder flippers that I currently own (including the Amalgam and Hanan which are both have compression locks and are the only ones w/light detents ) but it is NOT a "problem" as far as I am concerned, because the blades stay in place unless forcefully wrist-flipped, in which case, I think it's a "good" thing because I can open the knife quickly w/o even using the flipper.
 
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Lapedog said:
Awesome name, Gundamaniac! I have been abit on the fence about this knife but the designer being a Gundam Maniac I might have to get one now.

I had kind of overlooked the Amalgam because of the Smock but the Amal is becomin more and more appealing. I would really like to see the Ikuchi come out.

Can you tell if the liners are skeletonized?
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Definitely skeletonized. The knife is super light for its size, and it rides in the pocket exceptionally well. And I wouldn't worry about the flipping action; after using mine a few weeks I prefer the flipping action over any other flippers I have.
 
jstn said:
Definitely skeletonized. The knife is super light for its size, and it rides in the pocket exceptionally well. And I wouldn't worry about the flipping action; after using mine a few weeks I prefer the flipping action over any other flippers I have.
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My first Southard has abit of a softer detent and I actually like it too. I think people have got used to quite hard detents. As long as I can flip the knife every time I’m good.
 
Lapedog Lapedog , I'm a huge Gundam fan (mainly Universal Century stuff, although Wing was my gateway drug) and a massive Star Wars nut. Before knives, my main hobby was building "lightsaber" props (or beam sabers for Gundam maniacs ;)). But you can't really EDC a "lightsaber", and it's not nearly as useful as a "light + 'saber'" anyway :p

Yes, the Amalgam is skeletonized. Here's a pic of mine disassembled, minus the pocket clip and its screws which I forgot to include in the picture. I took it apart to polish the detent track (I do that to all my flipper knives regardless of manufacturer).

64lVlDt.jpg
 
GundaManiac said:
Lapedog Lapedog , I'm a huge Gundam fan (mainly Universal Century stuff, although Wing was my gateway drug) and a Star Wars nut. Before knives, my main hobby was building "lightsaber" props. But you can't really EDC a "lightsaber", and it's not nearly as useful as a "light + 'saber'" anyway :p

Yes, the Amalgam is skeletonized. Here's a pic of mine disassembled, minus the pocket clip and it's screws which I forgot to include in the picture. I took it apart to polish the detent track (I do that to all my flipper knives regardless of manufacturer).

64lVlDt.jpg
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Let’s not hijack the thread but same for me. Wing was the first series I loved and then I watched all the UC stuff after....which I also love.

Never got into SEED or Turn A and that sort of thing.

Did you see their latest series in UC? Gundam Thunderbolt? Just awesome! It came out fairly recently.
 
Still working my way through Origin, but Thunderbolt's next on my list. Been pretty blown away by the animation quality in the newer releases. I'm holding out hope that they'll extend Origin into a full remake of the original 1979 series.

Anyway, back on topic kind of...here's my Amalgam with a couple knives I got for Christmas. A lockback Laguiole by Fontenille Pataud with an XC75 blade and ebony scales, and a midlock Le Thiers by Chambriard with a 13C26 blade and scales made from a recycled oak wine barrel (both should traditionally be slipjoints, but I like locks on my folders when I can get them). Didn't realize how big the Laguole was until I put my Amalgam next to it. They're nice knives but they made me appreciate the grind on the Amalgam even more. Despite being a traditional style knife, the Laguiole is nearly the same thickness as the Amalgam at the spine, but has a shorter blade height and so is more of a wedge and actually binds more than the Amalgam when cutting through things (mainly been using the Laguiole on things like cheese and saucisson so far P=)
3GjcQyd.jpg
 
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Well, I said I wanted to hold out until there was a sprint run in a different steel, but I couldn't wait. I just bought one and I love it.

But when is Spyderco going to start using more premium steels on knives that are near $200 and UP? An American made ZT with 20cv with titanium scales can be bought new at a similar price. It's like Spyderco bought 80% of the world's S30V in one shot and has to put it on almost all their knives.
 
Thanks for the nice size comparisons with different knife families! You wouldn't happen to have one with a Manix and a Manix XL would you? :p

Edit: just got an original Manix in, so here we go. Comparison with an original Manix and a Manix 2 backlock:
13x8GX9.jpg
 
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My new Amalgam just arrived here via APO, and after taking it out of the box, the first thing that struck me is how amazingly light it is. The flipper is very positive and the action can only be described as smooth - like, crazy smooth, better than any other flipper I've tried. The edge is nice and sharp, and I'm looking forward to carrying this knife as part of my mission essential gear. The lightness is one of the many things that makes it ideal for my application, as every bit of gear I wear adds a bit of weight here and there, so shaving several ounces in a few places really adds up.

The handle is astonishingly ergonomic, and works for saber or reverse grip equally well. The generous and comfortable choil ensures that my hand won't slip forward onto the blade if I ever have to punch it through anything.

I will most likely order another one very soon, just in case anything happens to this one, because it is rapidly becoming my favorite Spyderco of all time, after more than two decades of carrying various flavors of Endura or Military models.
 
I would like to see an Amalgam sprint run at some point. Still enjoying my knife.
 
I can't see this being a huge seller, but I think it will eventually be a grail for collectors. Not for me, but I can certainly see it's an interesting piece for sure.
 
It's a pretty solid knife. I'd prefer a little more of a pointy tip, and the choil would be more comfortable with a straighter riccaso and thicker steel over the choil. But aside from that, it's sweet. It's not 50HRC either, I've been trying to take a little off the front of the blade spine, but it's tough stuff. Laughs at my extra coarse diamond plate. Might take awhile.

The stop pin set up is nice too. The track for the interior stop pin is grooved on the blade tang but doesn't go all the way through the tang. Nice and strong. That's good design.
 
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Take tiny amount of metal off and it looks much better imo.
MSMtVvz.jpg

Or a bit of a curve
jBot0Xr.jpg
 
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